Create amazing photo effects, animations, magazine covers, and more with this free site. Choose the effect, upload a picture, and save to your computer for use anywhere. Ads appear throughout this site. Be sure to warn students to only use the tabs along the top and choose the photo effects under each tab.This site includes advertising.

In the Classroom

Users need to be able to find and upload a photo on their computer or find the direct URL of an image on the Internet. Younger students would need a lot of assistance navigating this site. Adjust the picture using the easy to use tools (experiment to master them). Once the effect has been applied, you need to know where you are saving the picture and how to give it a meaningful file name to be found later.
Be sure to check district policy about using student pictures, though the web site does not "keep" them. If using pictures from the Internet, be sure to discuss copyright issues and approve pictures that students use.
Use these fun photo effects for creating interesting pictures for About Me information on blog and other sites. Use for pictures of lab events in science. These pictures can be incorporated into presentations or other multimedia products using online tools or PowerPoint. Students can dress as a historical figure, take and upload a picture, and use in classroom projects. Have students narrate their creative images using Thinklink, reviewed here.

Traditional art media become digital with the free ArtRage 2.6 Starter Edition paint program. Pencil, chalk, paint and marker tools smear, smudge, blend,and flow just like real art materials. You and your students can paint with thinned oils, use wet or dry markers, soften the pencil and control the hardness of the crayon, and much more. Scroll down the page to find the FREE 2.6 Starter download instead of the 30 day free trial of ArtRage 3.0.

In the Classroom

ArtRage 2.6 Starter Edition can be downloaded and installed on machines running Windows 7, Vista, XP, 2000, and Macintosh OS X 10.3.9 or later. Check with your IT department or administrator for download and installation approval and help (if needed). ONly the need to download and install pushes this tool to the "Edge."

The ArtRage 2.6 interface is simple and intuitive, with large icons which clearly identify tools and options. While the program has a user guide and the website offers a quick start tutorial plus several technique-specific tutorials, fifteen minutes of clicking on icons, exploring the menus and playing with tools will give you a good start creating works of art. Teachers and students who are familiar with standard paint programs included in Windows and Mac machines will quickly grasp the basics and enjoy exploring the artistic possibilities of ArtRage 2.6. The program supports English, French or German language labels on tools and menus.

Be sure to ask student "experts" to demonstrate the ArtRAge tools on your interactive whiteboard. Students can use ArtRage 2.6 to create illustrations, drawings and paintings for storybooks, book reviews and author posters in English or language arts activities. Math and science concepts can be explained through illustrative drawings, such as a diagram of a flower's parts or the steps in oxidation. Make visual representations of mathematical operations or concepts such as fractions. Have ELL or foreign language students import images into ArtRage 2.6, trace and color them to create unique vocabulary cards and posters illustrating new words. Recognize and celebrate your students by importing their digital photos and applying textures and effects to create special birthday cards, awards, bulletin board pictures, and desktop signs. Share students' curriculum-related digital art projects on your class web page, blogs, or wiki (with parent permission) as well as your bulletin board.
There are no safety concerns with this program because it is locally installed and does not involve interaction with the "general public" or social networking.

These pages, sparked by a presentation by TeachersFirst's own Candace Hackett Shively, provide a way to plan and conduct curriculum projects to build creativity skills along with curriculum concepts. Using the lens of Guilford's model of divergent thinking: fluency, flexibility, originality, and elaboration (FFOE for short), teachers and students have a shared vocabulary and specific creativity skills to evaluate and develop. Find specific ways to differentiate for varied student creativity skills while creating curriculum projects using free web 2.0 tools. The pages include the "Prezi" visual presentation from ISTE 2010 about this model (no audio, just the visuals). These pages provide explanations and, most importantly, practical ways to look at the projects that teachers plan and the products that students produce so they can continue to build FFOE skills as part of any grade level or curriculum. Customizable rubrics make implementation easier at any grade level.

In the Classroom

Do more than simply tell your students to "be creative." Try the ideas and practical suggestions on these pages if you ask: How do I help students who struggle with "being creative" in project-based learning? How do I differentiate tools/projects to match students' varied creativity skills? How do I know that more "creative" students are moving forward, challenging their creative thinking and not simply using past "tried and true" ideas, wrapped in a little glitz? How do my students and I talk about the creativity skills they used (or did not use) in making a project?

Looking for easier ways to share images? Pronounced "Imager," this site is easy to use. Use the super-simple photo-sharing site to upload photos or insert image URL addresses. Click the upload button or enter the URL of the image from the Internet (obtainable by right clicking the online image and selecting "properties" or "Get info"). No need to register for an account. Uploaded images are private and only the person who uploaded has the URL of the image. Use the simple editing options to be sure the image fits in the blog, wiki, or site you are using it on. File upload is limited to 2 MB. Use a direct link or embed code to share your uploaded image wherever you need.

In the Classroom

Use in the classroom to quickly upload and share images. Create albums where individual photos can be titled or captioned. Have students categorize photos and describe them. Use for any project, class explanation of concepts, experiments, or demonstrations. Share pictures of class happenings, speakers, field trips, and other opportunities you would want to share.

Users must be able to find a suitable image for upload from their computer or the Internet. Follow the very simple directions to manipulate the image. Since no registration is necessary, Imgur is easy and safe to use. Be aware that relying on services such as these can be a problem if the site no longer exists in the future. Be sure that students understand rules for sharing appropriate and inappropriate images and copyright concerns.

Have no fear, SlideShare is here! Whether you consider yourself techno phobic or ultra savvy, this site offers something for every level of user. This site hosts tons of prefabricated slide shows or Power Point presentations, and considers itself the largest presentation sharing website available. As educators, we know the value of professional borrowing and this site puts slide show resources for any content area right at your fingertips. For the more daring, upload your own slide presentation creations. Once posted, you can see how many people have viewed your show. View comments left by people who have viewed your show to gain feedback and participate in educational discussion. Shows can be embedded in blogs, social networking sites, or downloaded to your computer (Where - YES! You can edit it to suit your specific needs!) This is not a slide show creation tool, but rather a sharing resource for educators and civilians alike.This site includes advertising.

In the Classroom

Pull published slide shows for use in your classroom. Download a slide show as a template and modify it for your specific needs. In science class, have students record each other completing a lab activity. Then have the students put that footage into a slide show with snapshots of work and products of the lab. Have students create a voice over track and sync it using the slidecast part of the site. It would make for a powerful learning experience. Post slide shows of class notes and have students comment on what they understand or do not understand as an online discussion. If you teach online through cyberschool or virtual learning programs, use slidecast to create "teaching tracks" to go with your notes. It allows you to create a short, but helpful lecture for your distance learners. They will appreciated the verbal aspect of the learning.

This website allows you to upload, so you will need a basic understanding of where your files are located on your computer to do this. However, you are not required as a member to upload anything unless you want to do so. An interesting and valuable feature of this site is that it will allow you to sync audio files or podcasts with your slide show, creating what the website has coined a slidecast. You can create groups to share slideshows privately to only your group members.

Write your own story or collaborate and create a story using pictures, themes, and other prompts generated by the site. Students and families also can view stories created by others. The final story is available for sharing via URL or email (or keeping private) and printing it is an option. Basically, write text and titles, create a book cover, add graphics, and pass the product to a co-writer (if collaborating) who adds more until both feel the story is complete. A demo video explains the basics. A special section for artists encourages art contributions and explains how to use the art to enhance the stories. An Education area provides a way for teachers to set up accounts for a class with or without student email. If your district blocks YouTube, the video may not be viewable. You could always view the video at home and bring it to class "on a stick" to share. Use a tool such as Tube Offline, reviewed here, to download the video from YouTube.

In the Classroom

Have pairs of students create a story by working collaboratively after you have explained and demonstrated the basics. Encourage your older students to use this tool for projects created in response to research or extra study. This is a great find for gifted students who want to include art work and use their creativity in productive ways. ESL/ELL students can use the site to recreate folk tales and recreations from their home countries.

This fabulous site allows you to post and share photos related to a certain event with others. Create an "event" and share the link for others to upload photos. Only the creator of the event must register on the site. All others upload without registering. Email photos to the event site as well. Set permissions for instant sharing or moderate pictures before they show on the Drop Event site. Choose to make your event public or private. Note: If public, it will show up in Drop Event searches and be visible to others. When you create your event, answer questions to create your free account. Note: Most recent events appear on the main page of this site. Be sure to check for appropriate content before showing to students. Consider directing students to the URL of the actual event page.

In the Classroom

This site is great for students to upload photos from field trips or other events. Keep track of project accomplishments by uploading pictures of the process. Have a class project such as DNA models or types of plants? Get them out of the classroom by taking pictures and uploading them to Drop Event. Make a collection for local history or photos of lab results during a bridge-building or pumpkin seed counting activity. Collect images that students can then use in Thinglink, reviewed here, "lab reports" about their discoveries. Place the link to the event page you have created and invite parents to view the creations. Take snapshots to create a Day In The Life event for your classroom. What better way to share memories! Have parent volunteers? Have them upload their pictures too! Whatever project or event you have, sharing and collaborating with Drop Event is easy and fun!

This online tool lets you and your students create a collaborative "space" online in any subject, allowing as many people as you want to edit, make changes, add new content, etc. You may be familiar with wikipedia, but wikis can be so much more! A recent poll of "high tech" educators cited wikis as the one web-based tool they could not live without! If you have not tried a wiki yet, visit the TeachersFirst Wiki Walk-Through for a detailed, step-by-step explanation and starter help, including dozens of ideas for ways to use a wiki in your classroom.

In the Classroom

Click through the first two steps to create a free wiki, including the name (which becomes part of the wiki URL). Be sure to select "education" as the answer to "What is this wiki for?" Wait for your confirmation email (may take a while...check junk mail folder). After the email, choose whether your wiki is public or private (visible to members only or to the public). Set a "key" (password), if you wish. Bypass the offer to PAY. Use the Quickstart steps to configure the wiki just the way you want it or simply play to learn the Clickable editing toolbar. Add and edit pages, invite new members, explore the three template options and a few options for "skins." You may want to become familiar with the tool as a teacher-created site at first so you know its capabilities before turning students loose.

Safety concerns: Students need email accounts to have individual log-ins. Note: with this wiki tool, you do not have the option of "locking" certain pages or setting different "levels" of users. You and your students have equal access to make changes, once you make them "members." There are also "plug-ins' (widgets) available from the toolbar, some of which may connect you to sites with unmonitored content. Decide ahead of time what you policies are concerning use of the "plug-ins."

This site offers many different math interactives, puzzles, and activities for all learners of math! Math games include popular puzzles such as the frog puzzle, matching, and an interactive 100's chart. Number puzzles included are magic squares and triangles, multiplication tables, mazes, and much more. Be sure to check out the interactive algebra online section for some great conversation starters and practice. This site isn't always updated with the creator's most current resources, but there is a link provided to his weblog to find the most current information.

In the Classroom

Create a link on classroom or computer lab computers for students to explore or practice specific math skills. Choose a different game or activity each week as a game of the week. Ask students to respond to activities in math journals by describing thought processes when solving problems. Create a class math wiki to share the activities they have tried and their successes and challenges. For more information about wikis, check out the TeachersFirst's Wiki Walk-Through.

Tour the Sistine Chapel from every angle. Villanova's virtual tour allows you to fly, rotate, zoom, and scroll over Michelangelo's frescos from every perceivable point of view. They even enhance the chapel's celestial aura with music. If it were not for the wonderful food in Rome, this tour could possibly challenge the merits of an actual visit.

In the Classroom

This site is perfect to support coursework in Art History, Studio Art, and World History. Introduce this site on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Then have students explore this site independently or in small groups. Be sure to include a link to this site in a hot list of sources concerning Renaissance art. Consider asking a group of students to do additional research about the Sistine Chapel and it's fresco. Have students act as a virtual docent and record a screencast presentation using Screencast-o-matic, reviewed here, or Screencastify (Chrome app), reviewed here. Take still screen shots of the frescos to use in reports or other multimedia presentation format such as Animoto (reviewed here) or podOmatic, reviewed here. This site is excellent for enrichment. Include it on your class web page for students to access both in and out of class.

Catch a glimpse of the restoration of Frank Lloyd Wright's Robie House. Using digital age tools, preservationists are able to virtually reunite the Robie House with its original furnishings. Additional information about Wright's Prairie style architecture, the interior architect George Mann Niedecken, the Avery Coonley, and Dana House is also available.

In the Classroom

This site is a valuable resource for potential biography reports, and history students. The short biography of Frank Lloyd Wright and George Mann Niedecken provides an informative introductory look at these two great artists. Art history students will enjoy viewing the virtual restoration tour. The concept of reuniting dispersed artwork with their original home is a fascinating subject for class discussion. Consider posing questions such as "Should we return artifacts to original location for the sake of preservation?" and if so "What other American artifacts would you return?" Possibly museum curators would like to hear these suggestions? TeachersFirst contains links to major online museum collections such as The National Gallery of Art (reviewed here), The National Museum of the American Indian (reviewed here, and many more.

The Origami Club makes the art of folding paper child's play. The animated video tutorials and printable directions take the guesswork out of making origami. There is a wide variety of directions for creating animals, creatures, food, holiday gifts, and accessories. The site also includes printable origami paper, links to other origami sites and new designs each month. There are some minor advertisements at this site.

In the Classroom

Learn about the culture of Japan, geometry, and art with Origami. Use these video tutorials to create clever objects for holiday gifts while teaching mathematical principals about 2D and 3D figures, line, area, perimeter, and planes. Demonstrate how to create an origami object by projecting the site's animated videos directions. Stop and pause the video as students follow along. Save this site in your favorites on classroom computers so students can practice paper folding independently. Afterward, discuss the benefits of oral, visual, or animated directions. Ask students to describe the folding process with geometric terms such as fractional parts, symmetry, faces, edges, rotations, lines, triangle, angles, and shapes. Consider having students use a variety of multimedia presentation platforms to publish their personal version of directions. Have students create multimedia presentations that add narration to each fold with Thinglink, reviewed here. Alternatively, share video directions on SchoolTube, reviewed here, or TeacherTube reviewed here. Have cooperative learning groups create podcasts demonstrating how to create origami with sites such as PodOmatic, reviewed here.

Color, Vision and Art examines both scientific and artistic interpretations of color. This is one of many interdisciplinary exhibits found on WebExhibits online museum. This particular showcase makes the connection between the birth of Modern art and the scientific revolution of the 19th century. Articles include historic investigations into the psychological effect of color upon the emotions, the anatomy of the human eye, color vision theory, and the brain's perception of color. The site also provides fascinating information about oil and egg tempera painting and how each achieves the illusion of light and space. They examine not only Western Art of the 19th, 20th and 21st century, but also African Art.

In the Classroom

Color, Vision and Art offers students a unique opportunity to make cross-curricular connections and is a great starting point for individual or group projects. Students interested in Anatomy, Neuroscience, Painting, or Art History, will enjoy exploring this site independently. Each individual chapter comes with a selection of extension tasks from which students can choose. The "Exhibit" tab also offers suggestions for directing class discussions and provides tasks that initiate higher order thinking. Guiding questions about the neurobiological interpretation of color, will simultaneously develop student ability to analyze and interpret color used in art. Have students create a multimedia presentation to report about what they have learned using Thinglink, reviewed here. This site allows users to narrate a picture. Challenge students to find a reproduction of a painting (legally permitted to be reproduced), and include a narration about the artist's use of color. There are also interactive activities to demonstrate aspects of color theory. Project these interactive tools on an interactive whiteboard to the whole class and experiment with simultaneous color contrast, and luminance together. Use this site as the starting point for individual or group projects. This site is excellent for enrichment. Include it on your class web page for students to access both in and out of class, especially when they are designing their own multimedia projects and want to take advantage of color's subtleties.

This site contains how-to videos for kids. Topics include science, paper airplanes, cooking, origami, cartooning, puppets, music, dance, math, and holidays. A summary next to the activity title gives the appropriate level, the number of views, and a starred evaluation of the demonstration. Holiday craft ideas and demos finish up the educational portion of the offerings. If your district blocks YouTube, the videos may not be viewable. You could always view them at home and bring them to class "on a stick" to share. Use a tool such as ClipGrab, reviewed here, to download the videos from YouTube.

In the Classroom

Share the video clips on your interactive whiteboard or projector to accompany curriculum topics in science, art, physical education, language arts, health, or family/consumer science. Or show the videos to a class as examples for writing how-to (demonstration) speeches and/or videos done in language arts classes. Challenge students to create their own videos using a site such as SchoolTube, reviewed here. Look here also for ideas of holiday craft projects. Share the link on your class web page for students to try activities at home during breaks.

At this wonderful site, learn about the history of Treasury securities, U.S. debt, and the importance of saving and investing. You can view an old video featuring an ancient superman talk about buying U.S. savings bonds, try several money interactives, and do money math. Learn about the important history of U.S. borrowing. Viewing old war bond posters is another way to learn history and learn about old styles of graphic design. Graphs of U.S. debt complete another approach to teaching about basic banking and debt. Many wonderful short videos show TV advertisements for savings bonds.

In the Classroom

After presenting the basic info on this site, view the posters under the tab Art of Debt. Discuss and then have students make online posters parallel to the old ones they see displayed here. Use an online poster creator, such as Padlet, reviewed here. Have them make their own graphs of funds and debts based on their own finances using ChartGizmo, reviewed here. Use this site when teaching percentages; have students do problems figuring the interest on today's debt. Introduce them to the concept of buying a bond today and have them calculate its accrued interest and how many years it will take to gain face value. Have students in a team create modern day videos using a tool like moovly, reviewed here, to advertise and sell savings bonds. Share the videos using a tool such as SchoolTube, reviewed here.

At Floating World your students will do more than create a video of their own story. They will learn about Japanese history and culture through the explanations of the classic Japanese art work. There is a demonstration video to show students how to make their own movie and a pdf file to download 64 cards so students can work together to rough out story ideas before starting their animation. On each page of the site you will also find a button marked "Add this page." This allows you to build a useful resource to map out a story.

In the Classroom

You will have to know how to type and drag and drop the images, backgrounds, and sounds you want in your animated story.

When saving the video you are also asked for your name. You will want to give the students a code to use instead of their name.

Use this site to make animated short stories in any content area. Have students create new events for a literary character or tell the story of a famous person. Post student work to your classroom website or blog for students to use at home for review and for parents to view. Be sure to share the presentations on your projector or interactive whiteboard at school.

This word cloud generator is made specifically for children. This site takes any text and creates a "word cloud" (graphical display) of the words in a passage of text. The most frequent words appear larger. Paste in any passage or grouping of text to create a word cloud of the text. Students can choose their own colors, type of display, font, and the final cloud can be printed or saved.

In the Classroom

This is a great visual tool to use. Take a poll and have your students type their answers into the word cloud builder. Then display on an interactive whiteboard or projector and see which answer was the most popular. Use this site as a way to help students see and memorize text, especially visual learners. Use it also when writing poetry or to "see" themes of repeated words and images. Have students paste in their own writing to spot repeated (and monotonous) language when teaching lessons on word choice. Students will be surprised to see what words appear to be dominant. Have students work in groups to create word posters of vocabulary words with related meanings, such as different ways to say "walk" or "said" and decorate your classroom with these visual reminders of the richness of language.

This unique collaboration between Google and many of the world's most respected art museums enables viewers to explore and discover the museums and more than a thousand artworks in extraordinary detail. All content pertaining to individual artworks was provided by the museums. Browse the galleries within each museum using Google's Street View technology that allows you to navigate the interactive floor plan and select the works of art that interest you, or browse using Google's Artwork View technology to zoom into paintings, learn more about the artwork, find more works by that artist, and watch related YouTube videos. What are you waiting for? "Travel" with your class on a virtual fieldtrip to The MoMa in New York City, The Tate Britain in London, The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, and many more.

In the Classroom

Bring galleries from all around the globe right into your classroom and project them in full view on your whiteboard or screen. Whether your objective is to explore curriculum connections to topics you are studying, introduce and examine concepts such as a particular theme or time period, practice descriptive writing, pair works of art with literary selections and historical documents, or develop art appreciation, start by selecting a museum, and then either chose to explore the museum or view the artwork. The drop-down menus and information bars let you navigate easily between the museum and artworks. Choose the "Create an Artwork Collection" feature to build a class collection of specific views of the artworks and add comments; then share online. Create and annotate a class collection to pair with a literary work or invite each student to select a work for a Favorites Museum, explaining his/her choice in written comments. Then share the link for parents to tour the "museum" and comment back. For more ideas, lesson plans, and projects, check out the National Gallery of Art reviewed here and browse the online resources for teachers and students. Try inviting the art teacher to collaborate on a joint venture with you.

This web page consists of an adaptable lesson plan and information that is chock full of creative, interactive, practical, ready to use activities based upon the discovery and usefulness of the kite. There are interdisciplinary projects including art/history, science, geography, language arts, and math that are fun for students of all age ages. Spring, or any season, is the perfect time to introduce your students to the fascinating world of kites. At the time of this review, two of the links were no longer active. However there are many useful links that make this site a worthwhile tool!

In the Classroom

Check out this educational page for many ideas, links, and ready to do projects. This all-encompassing lesson plan challenges students to participate in enthusiastic learning activities about why kites have often appeared in poetry, legends, and folk tales, and have led to important scientific discoveries. Invite students to try one of the many ideas to create and decorate a kite that represents flags from various countries. Ask them to label the kite with that country's word for kite, using the link provided for the Kite Translation Table. Allow your students to be adventurous with technology by providing them with the opportunity to create online posters using Animoto for Education reviewed here.

Replace annoying Internet ads with art! Add-Art is an innovative and free ad blocker for Firefox. It replaces areas that previously contained ads with artwork instead. Simply visit the website and install the necessary plug-in. (Only those with administrative permission on their computers will be able to install this plug-in). A short video on the site's home page provides clear, systematic installation instructions. Once this process is complete, your Internet will start to look like an art gallery.

*Note from the creators of the site, "Firefox 4 compatibility - Add-Art does not work w/ Firefox 4, yet. But it is an open-source, volunteer project and has always been improved by people like you. The code is free for you to modify so you don't have to start from scratch."

In the Classroom

Blocking ads on school computers is a great way to avoid inappropriate content and will reduce the confusion that visual inference can cause. Be sure to get permission from your IT department before installing this ad-on to school computers. Maybe you can even convince them to install it schoolwide! Preview the artwork that Add-art uses by clicking on "Shows" before installing this ad on. Plug-ins such as Add-Art are not permanent and are easy to disable.